Meanmna: Book One of the Daearen Realms (4 page)

Saturday December 13, 2014

I have always been able to wake up when necessary—it didn’t matter if it was an afternoon nap when I had only forty-seven minutes, or an early morning project I had to finish before school. I wondered if that was one of my super powers. Perhaps Elwin could clue me in about that, too. I opened my eyes and stared at the stars on my ceiling. I had slept well for the first time in a really long while. No dreams!

I turned my head to stretch and caught the time on the clock.
“Holy crap! It’s
10 a.m.
I never sleep this late!” I said to myself. “Never mind the super power thing. Maybe this whole scenario has me a little off. At least I’m not calling myself crazy anymore.”

I
swung my legs over the side of my bed, set my feet on the floor and caught my image in the dresser mirror. I didn’t look any different, but I definitely felt different. I padded over to my desk and got my phone out of my purse. I scrolled through my texts and found five text messages and a missed call from Mathew.

11:59
p.m.
: Do you want help
tomorrow
with math?

7:00
a.m.
: Going jogging. Want to come?

8:00
a.m.
: Back from jogging. R u up yet?

9:00
a.m.
: Seriously, you never sleep this late. Call me.

Missed call
at
9:15
from Mathew.

9:58
a.m.
: I’m coming over and breaking in!

I hit the call button
and wrestled with putting on a sweatshirt single-handedly as I walked toward the balcony. I could hear a phone ringing, which meant Mathew was on the lawn below.

“
Geez, Mathew. Stalk much?” I opened the door and shouted to him as I walked to the edge of my roof. “Can’t a girl sleep in without you getting all crazy?”

“
I have known you my entire life and you have never slept past
8 a.m.—
ever. Excuse me for worrying.” He looked relieved as he gazed up at me and shut his phone dramatically. “You want coffee? Steph bought me some gourmet stuff I can bring over.”

“
I knew you were on the S’s.” I shouted as I heard Mathew opening the kitchen door. “I’ll be right down after a quick shower.”

I sauntered back into my room and notice
d the crystals sitting on my nightstand. Mom had some serious explaining to do. I grabbed clean clothes and headed downstairs to the bathroom.

As I got out of the
shower a few minutes later, I could smell coffee. When I turned the corner into my kitchen, Mathew was checking email on his phone.

“
Hey, thanks for worrying about me,” I said as I grabbed my favorite square blue coffee mug. It was heavy and huge, with an etched Celtic-looking knot design. It fit my hand perfectly, which meant I could fit four fingers inside the handle. I’m not a big pinky-raising person. “How was your date?” Leaning back on the counter I looked at him. “Which Steph was it?”

“
The date was really good. You don’t know her. She lives in Toledo; met her in the field house at Siena Heights University. She’s thinking about going there next fall. She loves the small campus and that the school is run by Dominican nuns. Did you know that the Dominican sisters are millionaires? Creating social change from the inside out, in companies like Dow, has really paid off. Maybe I should see if I could audit a business class there next semester.”
Wow, He looks happy. He should be happy, I guess.
“She wants to meet you, too. Maybe we can go see a movie next weekend. What do you think?”

“
Third wheel, sounds like a lot of fun.” Disappointment must have shown on my face. I took the towel off my damp hair and tossed it toward the laundry room door.

“
Maybe Steph has someone she can bring. Or, is there someone you could ask?”

“
Why do I need a date? It’s not like we can chat in the movies anyhow.”

“
You might not feel like a third wheel at all. At least, not until we go out for coffee afterward. You could bail then.” He was begging with those puppy dog eyes of his; I could tell he really liked her.

“
Let me think about it, okay?” I took another sip of my coffee, looking at him from over the rim of my mug. Elwin’s face popped into my mind. It wasn’t really Elwin’s face, but rather a smirk and his jeweled green eyes. I’ve never seen a color quite like that one. All of his features came into focus in my mind. His strong arms made me wonder how it would feel to have him hold me. I could feel the heat creeping up my face.
Stop it, Sarette!
I quickly took another drink of coffee, hoping Mathew hadn’t noticed.

“
You must have had a good night. You’re blushing. Did you end up meeting a guy when you went to get coffee?” He rambled on without waiting for me to respond. “Was he a college guy? Siena Heights or Adrian? Football or track? Frat guy?” I didn’t say anything. “Come on! You have to give me something!”

What
could I say?
Yeah, I met a guy last night! He’s a knight, sent by my long lost family to retrieve me for some inner dimensional journey fraught with danger. I’m not sure if we’ll be back by
next Saturday
or if we will have time for trivialities such as dating
,
but I can check to see if he wants to go to a movie with us!

I took another sip of my coffee.
“Well, yes. I did meet someone—outside of Visions. But I’m not really sure about him yet. He wants me to call him after I’m done with my homework.”

“
What’s his name?” He smiled teasingly.

“
Elwin. But like I said, I’m not sure about him yet. But, if our first date goes well, I’ll ask if he wants to go with us.”

“
Good!” Mathew stood up, stretching.

I decided to employ a tactic that I know usually works with Mathew: c
hange the subject to something that either annoys or flatters him. “Are you sure you’re not on human growth hormones? ’Cause you are looking pretty ripped, dude.”

“
So, where is Elwin from?” Mathew smiled. “You don’t actually think that I can’t tell when you’re changing the subject on me, do you?” He paused. “All right, no more questions for now . . . but soon.” He walked over, put his hand on my head and mussed my hair. “Now, if you don’t need any help with math, I’m going to head home. I have a date this afternoon.”

“
I’m all good. Thanks for the coffee, or rather thank Steph for the coffee.”

He
bent down and kissed my cheek before he headed out the back door. I refilled my coffee cup and headed upstairs to finish my homework.

Solve
3[3 - (5x - 6)] + 7x = 0

A)
27/8

B)
7/4

C)
-16/27

D)
70/31

E
) None of the above

I spent the next ten minutes working out the problem and checking my math.
I circled A on the Xeroxed busy work and closed my math book. I looked over to my never-used alarm clock. It was
11:55 a.m.
Mom was not going to be home until after 3 p.m., so I had some down time. I thought about calling Elwin to find out if there would be food where we were going. Surely, the meals are served on jeweled sterling trays in other dimensions! That is, unless my family members were vampires.
Crap, what if I’m a vampire? I hate blood.
I had never heard of a knighted vampire, though, so I figured Elwin  probably wasn’t going to bite my neck.

I noticed a shimmer
across the room. The rocks on my nightstand seemed to be glowing. I quickly walked over to them and picked up one in each hand. Neither stone remained opaque. Like I’d first witnessed at the store, they were clear dark green with white swirls inside. As I sat down on my bed, the two crystals accidentally touched one another. I was instantly being pulled out of my body. I closed my eyes, hoping to relieve the nauseated rollercoaster feeling in my stomach. An odd, electric feeling washed over me, then suddenly it all stopped. I opened my eyes to vivid greens and blues. I gasped when I realized where I was.

Holy moly! I
was in my dream, but it wasn’t a dream. I was standing at the edge of the forest, looking at the lake. The weather was so beautiful! Sunny and about seventy-seven degrees, just the way I like it. I was completely overdressed in my wool sweater and jeans. The water was so blue it was sparkling like gemstones in the sun. My eye caught something in the water about twenty yards out. Someone was swimming out there. It was Elwin. I could only see his shoulders and head above the water.

I stroll
ed down to the edge of the lake. I noticed that I was still holding the crystals together in my hands.

“
Hey,” I said as casually as possible. Startled, he turned around and started walking toward the shore. I could not stop looking as the water slowly lowered on his muscular body. Attentive and focused, I scanned his shoulders and biceps, toned and strong. His chest was defined and hairless.
Manscape or natural?
I wondered as I looked up to meet his smiling eyes. Tyra Banks on
America’s Next Top Model
would say he was “smizing”. I wondered if I could still watch that show when I got to wherever it is I was going.

“
You’re going to have to turn around so I can get out,” he said.

“
Huh?” I responded, not quite understanding.
Holy crap! He’s naked.
I blushed. “Sorry.” I quickly turned around and closed my eyes.

I hear
d him laughing as he walked out of the water and moved to my left. After a few moments, he cleared his throat and said, “You can open your eyes now.”

My face heated even more when I saw the rest of his six-
pack being hidden under some over-washed Phish t-shirt. “Phish? They’re okay. Not fully my vibe,” I spoke in an attempt to help cool my excitement. “I’ve seen a bunch of live music, thanks to my mom. I’ve seen more than thirty Widespread Panic shows with her. I find that few things are more exhilarating than dancing to a really good version of ‘Ribs N’ Whiskey’.”

“
No, I guess you wouldn’t find Phish to be your vibe,” Elwin answered as soon as he could get a word in edgewise. “I like Phish all right, but I really I wear these because I think these are . . .” He pulled out his shirt and looked down, “. . . hysterically ironic.” He was smiling. “Want to see why?”

“
Sure.”

He turn
ed toward the water and raised his arms out in front of him. He was holding a stick in his right hand and said something in a language that I did not recognize. He lowered his hands, put the stick in his pocket, and cast me a quick look before he walked out on the water. Not
in
the water, but on
top
of the water. My jaw dropped open. He was only about ten feet out when he stopped and turned around. He laughed a little when he noticed my shocked expression.

“
Can you guess how I did that, or
what
I am? By the way, your awed face is pretty darn cute.” He laughed, and then mimicked me with wide eyes and his mouth formed in an “o” shape. He was still laughing when I shook my head no in reply to his question. He started gently waving his arms at his sides, and little waves started moving away from him on either side of where he was standing. It created what looked like a catwalk from him to the shore. They obviously have their own version of
Top Model
here.

“
You see, I’m not really controlling the water. I can ask it to do certain things and if it wants to, it will do what I ask. So the Phish shirt is me having fun, rather than being a fan.”

“
You talk as if water is a living, breathing thing,” I said.

“
Not breathing, but certainly living. All of nature is connected and balanced. It’s our job here to make sure that balance remains. Do you want to try and walk out here?”

Without giving it a moment
’s thought, I walked out on the water and came right up to him. His mouth dropped open, which I thought was funny. I quickly made the “o” shape with my mouth the way he had.

“
I’ve never seen anything like that,” he said as he tucked a stray curl behind my ear.

“
Anything like what? I hope I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“
I didn’t have to come and get you. You didn’t even have to ask. Everyone has to ask. Wow.” He was staring at me, smiling that beautiful smile I had already become so fond of.

“
You still haven’t told me what you are.”

He lean
ed down a little, not quite face to face, but much closer than before. He clenched his fist and placed it over his heart as he said, “My name is Elwin Colin of the Water Fey. I am a knight in the High Spirit Court. And you . . .” He paused and looked sad. Then, he bent down so his mouth was right next to my ear and said, “And,
you
are my princess. A fairy princess.”

“
I’m a fairy princess?” I could feel his arms tighten around me as I fainted.

I
sat up straight and opened my eyes. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but the sun was still shining brightly overhead. I closed my eyes again and took a deep breath, trying to recover. I blinked slowly and saw that I was still in my dream, but now I was on the shore, trying to remember what Elwin had said. I couldn’t have heard him correctly. A princess? That’s absurd. I am just an ordinary and boring chick who likes coffee a bit too much. There had to be some mistake.

“
I don’t make mistakes,” I heard a voice coming from my right. Elwin was sitting next to me. He sat up and started rubbing his hands together to dust the sand off. Smirking a little, he said, “It’s not that I don’t like a damsel in distress as much as the next guy, but the fainting thing is going to be an unnecessary hindrance. Try to not do that anymore.”

“
Funny. I don’t understand how I can be a fairy, let alone a princess. Seriously, I’m a human high school student struggling to make sure I get into the right colleges, whatever those are.”

“
Well, first, it’s actually
fey
princess. I used the more common human term, hoping that might ease the news, which it didn’t.” He was smirking and his eyes were laughing. “We can agree to disagree about there not being anything extraordinary about you. In fact, I think you are one of a kind, Sarette Miller.”

“
What does that mean?” I said, creating a breeze by flapping my sweater in and out. “Is it always this hot here?”

“
Well, you are a little overdressed for where we are. We have two options. One, we go back to the god-awful cold in Michigan and figure out some way to keep warm. Or, you can go and put on your swimsuit and meet me back here.” It seemed like he was flirting with me. I was not sure how, but his eyes looked hungry.

“I vote to go b
ack to Michigan where I can make coffee to keep warm while we wait for my mother. If I’m going to faint every time we talk about this, I’d rather only faint once. I don’t want to hear the story over and over again. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“
I’m picking up what you’re putting down,” stated Elwin in a cute but mocking tone. After watching me for the last year he must have known that was one of my favorite phrases. He reached to my side and picked up my crystals. They must have stuck together like magnets because he was only holding one of them.

“
Take these,” he said as he handed them to me. “Close your eyes and pull the stones apart. I’ll be right behind you.” He reached down his shirt and pulled out a silver chain. The two stones on the pendant looked just like my stones, only much smaller.

“
Okay.” I closed my eyes and pulled my crystals apart. I got that same roller coaster feeling for a second, but when it stopped, I was back in my room, sitting cross-legged on my bed. I looked up just in time to see Elwin appear on my balcony. I jumped up, dropping the crystals on the bed, and ran to open the door for him.

“
That was so freaking cool!” I said excitedly. “What else can I do with these? A necklace like yours would be much more convenient than carrying these big crystals with me. So if I’m a princess, then … is my dad the king?” I was still angry about having no interaction with my family all these years, but curiosity compelled me to keep digging
.
“So where has my family been all this time? Why have my mom and I been all alone? Actually, it has been the four of us. You understand that I have to tell Mathew about this, right? There is no way on God’s green earth that I could ever keep this from him and our moms.” I abruptly stopped my nervous rambling.

“
You understand that they might not believe you, right?” he said.

“Yes, but t
hat doesn’t change the fact that I
have
to tell them. Not right now though. Mathew just started dating someone and he doesn’t need to be distracted. He really likes her. Oh, do you want to go to the movies with me and them next week? Mathew is ready for his girlfriend to meet his family and I’m up first.” I didn’t mean to ask Elwin out. It just slipped out.

“
That would be nice.” He was looking intently at me.

Jumping up from the bed
, I grabbed my phone off my desk and texted Mathew to let him know I had a date for
Saturday.
And to tell him that I was breaking into his house to get some more of that yummy coffee. A few seconds later he texted back: who is your date? I work till 5. C u then. Just hit brew ;)

I put the phone down and look
ed at Elwin.

“
All set for Saturday. And, next Sunday is Mathew’s and my birthday and we always do something special together. I’ll tell him about this craziness then. Come on, let’s go hit brew.”